Dehradun: Demanding stern punishment for the culprits, people from different walks of life, especially students and women, on Friday hit the streets across Uttarakhand in protest against the Delhi gang rape incident.

Holding placards and banners, school students took out a procession at city's busy Rajpur road to express solidarity with the rape victim, and demanded toughest punishment for the culprits.

A similar demonstration was held by schoolgirls at Lalkuan in Nainital.

Expressing abhorrence at the brutal assault of the girl who studied at an institute in Dehradun, a student in Lalkuan said culprits should be hanged to give a strong message to potential wrongdoers.

Women burnt effigies at Jhoolaghar in Mussoorie to register their protest against the incident.

Uttarakhand has been witnessing a spurt of protests for the past few days with students of DAV College, Uttarakhand Mahila Manch, Pradesh BJP Mahila Morcha and many other outfits holding rallies in different parts of the state.

Women members of Uttarakhand Bar Association have also demanded execution of the culprits, saying stringent punishment to them alone can serve as a deterrent and prevent such incidents.